Chapter 59

"Good morning! Miss Guan!" Mike, with slightly curly brown hair, waved enthusiastically to Guan Ying who was inside the glass door on the steps.

He appeared at the hotel entrance on schedule, a dark blue Chevrolet pickup truck parked behind him, clearly freshly cleaned. This was Guan Ying's second time meeting Mike since her first visit to the professor's home. Unlike their formal attire, Mike was dressed casually today: a white T-shirt and sky-blue work-style jeans. The look was simple, fresh, and youthful.

Guan Ying almost didn't recognize him at first through the glass door of the hotel lobby, until he grinned as he spoke, and then she recognized his smile and walked out of the hotel. Mike, however, seemed to be impressed by her and recognized her the moment she appeared at the front desk inside the door.

"Morning, Mike!" After simply greeting Mike, Guan Ying walked around to the car behind him and looked it up and down. "Oh! Is this your car?"

Mike saw that she was very interested in his car, and he was glad that he had washed it thoroughly before leaving. He took a step forward and leaned forward, knocking on the roof proudly: "Stands out, doesn't it?"

Guan Ying carefully inspected the car from front to back and praised it, "Although it's a low-end Colorado, you've spent a lot of money on modifications. Why not just buy a high-end model?"

Mike didn't know she knew all this, and asked in surprise, "You figured it out?"

"This is obvious! The original tires are 31-inch Goodyear AT tires, and you replaced them with 37-inch BFGoodrich KO2 tires; the wheel arches and winch, trunk and gantry are all common off-road modifications." Guan Ying only saw the exterior and roughly pointed out a few places.

Although Mike didn't quite understand some of the Chinese jargon, he knew she was truly knowledgeable wherever she pointed, and he couldn't help but beam with joy, as if he'd found a soulmate. "Wow! You're really different from the girls I know! This is actually a used car, but I bought it myself! I only had $8,000 at the time, and then I slowly earned some money and started modifying it here and there."

Guan Ying nodded in agreement, "Eight thousand dollars is a steal! Even though it's an older used car, the price/performance ratio is quite good. You're quite discerning. The best thing about this car is its DSSV damping system. Once it's modified, it'll be not only great for home use, but also suitable for outdoor off-roading!"

Mike hurriedly opened the car door and asked her to look inside the car.

Guan Ying waved her hand and said, "Wait a minute. I'll go upstairs and urge them to come down."

Mike: "Oh, that's okay. My mom won't be here to help until half an hour later. They don't need to leave so early. I came to pick you up first."

"Ah?" Guan Ying remembered that she had just had breakfast at the hotel. Her parents hurried her downstairs with the excuse, "Go downstairs and ask the front desk what time is the latest check-out time."

Mike was surprised to see that she seemed unaware. "Didn't they tell you? We have to go to the airport to pick up your sister first."

"My sister?" Guan Ying realized that her parents had probably originally planned to let Mike and Jiawei spend some time alone together since they picked them up at the airport, but she showed up mid-sentence, which turned it into this arrangement this morning. But why did her parents have to be so mysterious? Guan Ying turned and looked up at the window of the hotel room. Sure enough, the old couple were standing at the window looking down at them. Seeing her suddenly look up, her mother quickly patted her father's shoulder, and they both smiled and retreated back to the room. Oh, had her parents already said something to Mike? In their eyes, this scene was a blind date!

Mike nodded. "Yes, the earliest flight from Vancouver arrives at around 7:30. We still have half an hour to get there."

Since she was going to pick up Jiawei, she was of course happy and jumped into the car.

In the hotel room, Guan Xiong hid behind the curtains, chuckling and shrugging. His wife nudged him away from the window, "Hurry up and pack up! Mike's mom will be here soon. She's already gotten up early for us, so we can't keep her waiting downstairs."

Guan Xiong was pulled back, still smiling: "Hey, weren't you curious just now? From what I see, they really fell in love with each other."

My wife let go of my hand and said, "I was just curious. Why did our daughter suddenly change her personality and really like someone younger than her?"

Guan Xiong said proudly, "Hey, I was right. How could she know the benefits of dating a younger partner? Didn't you see how attentive Mike was just now? He helped open the door and helped to tidy up her skirt..."

My wife didn't take it seriously: "Don't say that too soon. Westerners are all into this, it makes them look gentlemanly. Mike treats me, an old lady, the same way."

Guan Xiong waved his hands: "How can they be the same? When someone helps you, it's because they think you're slow; when he treats our daughter, his eyes and mood are completely different!"

While sorting out the scattered items in the house, his wife replied, "Wow, you can see the look in his eyes from such a distance?"

Guan Xiong said firmly: "Hey, I'm already this old, and I still don't understand the relationship between men and women?"

My husband paused his work and sighed, "Oh, I think something's off about our daughter since she came back from Guangzhou. Do you think she's trying to compete with that Ju Yong kid? And Mike happens to be a musician too... Didn't she always say in her past relationships that she didn't like younger men? And the ones she'd dated were all related to her work: people in customs, taxation, associations, finance, lawyers. Her first love in college, who was the least compatible, was also a statistics major. She's never been in a relationship with anyone in the arts. Why has her perspective on love suddenly changed?"

Guan Xiong also started packing his suitcase: "Anyone of them is better than that little bastard!"

The old man scolded her, "I see you have something on your mind. We originally agreed to introduce Jiawei, but you let your daughter interfere! I can't say whether she is competing with Ju Yong, but you, old man, must be angry with the Zheng family. Look, Mike is younger than Ju Yong and comes from a well-off family. You are just hoping your daughter can get the upper hand so that you, old man, can quickly return to your country and show off!"

Guan Xiong lowered his head and muttered, "I originally chose him for our daughter, but you said she didn't like him, and you were afraid that she would really molest the other person's child, and it would be difficult for her to study with that professor in the future. You thought too much and insisted on giving him to Jiawei... No one knows a daughter better than her father..." Before he could finish his words, his wife threw a pair of socks on his head!

......

The scenery on the way from downtown Seattle to the airport is beautiful, from the coastline to the green grass in the suburbs, and from time to time you pass by several unique single-family courtyards along the way. The air is full of the smell of freedom!

A rock song was playing on the car stereo, and Guan Ying's body naturally followed the rhythm. When the song reached its most exciting part, she couldn't help but sing along exaggeratedly, as if releasing her emotions: "I hate myself for loving you!!!"

She had been studying difficult and obscure law books for many days. It was a rare day of freedom for her to pick up Jiawei. She didn't pay any attention to Mike, the little brother next to her. Thinking that the car was just right, the scenery outside the window was just right, and the song was just right for her, she was in a good mood. Isn't it a relief?

As the song played, Guan Ying's expression gradually became more unrestrained, with her hands swinging up and down like she was beating a drum: "Can't break free from the things that you do! I wanna walk but I run back to you~That's why I hate myself for loving you~!"

"Ow uh~~!" This sound came from the singer on the speakers, and also from Mike, who was driving next to her, accurately following her rhythm and shouting it out! His expression suddenly became even more exaggerated than hers. It was a pity that his hands were gripping the steering wheel, otherwise he would have picked up a guitar and played it with his bare hands like her!

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

After this section, the song began with an interlude and two unfamiliar verses, and Guan Ying fell silent, preparing to repeat the next verse. But Mike took over, singing even louder and more unbridled than her, turning to look at her from time to time, his eyes burning with emotion: "I think of you every night and day. You took my heart and took my pride away～～～～"

The song followed by the part that Guan Ying loved to sing was then sung by both of them.

After the song was finished, both of them rested.

Guan Ying couldn't help but burst out laughing as she recalled what had just happened. Mike looked at her and laughed too. For some reason, they both burst into laughter...

"You like it! Once again?" Mike was excited and turned the speaker button back.

"No no no...Thank you!" Guan Ying covered his fingers and gently twisted the speaker button to let the next song continue playing. However, the next song was Eminem's "Not Afraid", which contained many F**k words. Guan Ying couldn't sing along and could only nod silently to the rhythm.

The two songs had such different reactions in her that Mike misunderstood that she didn't like this one, but he couldn't bring himself to tweak the speakers anymore, so he asked, "You don't like rap?"

Guan Ying wasn't particularly fond of rap, nor was she particularly fond of it; in fact, she wasn't picky about music at all; as long as it sounded good, she enjoyed it. The old Joan Jett song mentioned earlier was one she'd been exposed to countless times as a child at Uncle Zheng's house. The melody was already etched in her memory, and she could instantly sing along...

He studied classical music, but the music in the car was all rock and rap. Guan Ying became curious: "I heard you studied saxophone in Boston? I thought you only listened to Kenny G, or at least jazz?"

"Ha! You know Kenny G?" Mike was still swaying to the rhythm of the speakers, but at the same time turned around and talked to her about Kenny G. Young people are unstable and not very stable when they are having fun.

Guan Ying didn't even have to choose her words carefully. She just said whatever came to her mind: "Almost everyone knows this! The school bell over there is his song 'Going Home'!"

"Wow! Really? Cool! You know what? Kenny G was born in Seattle!" He turned to look at Guan Ying, who looked surprised, raised his youthful and playful eyebrows, and nodded, "Yeah, Seattle is a magic city!"

The two chatted like this, from the car to music, then to the city and people of Seattle. Not every question was answered, as their cultural differences often led to irrelevant answers. The questioner would unconsciously ignore the answers and move on to the next topic. One spoke Chinese, the other English... But none of this affected their communication. Their minds were equally quick and their responses were responsive, creating a joyful atmosphere.

The car quickly arrived at the airport, but Mike was still not satisfied. When he got out of the car, he couldn't help but look at Guan Ying, his eyes full of admiration and love, and said exaggeratedly: "Guan Ying, I love you!"

After just a few songs, Mike and I became as close as brothers!

The phrase "I love you" isn't exactly uncommon in Western lands. Guan Ying hushed her nose, jumped out of the car, and accepted the offer with a smile. She generously responded with a hug and a pat on the shoulder: "Ha! Thank you, Mike! And I love you too~"